Content about Europe

It's one of the oldest cities in Europe – and one of the most vibrant on the Mediterranean coast. Welcome to Marseille, south of France, a city with 26 centuries of history, and still transforming.

A mix of cultures indeed, next to the harbour you'll find African markets, Italian communities (the border is not far), crowds of tourists and students from all over the world, Corsican, Spanish: all of them trying to preserve their traditions but also trying, at the same time, to hone Marseille's reputation as a truly multicultural tourist destination.

Unlock the ancient, enigmatic glamour of the Turkish metropolis with our guide

Pushed and pulled by the eastern and western worlds for centuries, absorbing influences and attitudes from both Europe and the Middle East, Turkey is astoundingly resilient.

And Istanbul, with 14 million people, has been the cosmopolitan centre of the region since it was founded as Constantinople in 330 AD. The Bosphorus Strait, a shipping lane that links the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea dividing Istanbul in two, is one of the boundaries between Europe and Asia.

Unlock the ancient, enigmatic glamour of the Turkish metropolis with our guide

Pushed and pulled by the eastern and western worlds for centuries, absorbing influences and attitudes from both Europe and the Middle East, Turkey is astoundingly resilient.

And Istanbul, with 14 million people, has been the cosmopolitan centre of the region since it was founded as Constantinople in 330 AD. The Bosphorus Strait, a shipping lane that links the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea dividing Istanbul in two, is one of the boundaries between Europe and Asia.

The banking group hosted an event at its Edinburgh headquarters to celebrate the top employers on Stonewall’s recent Workplace Equality Index

Banking group Lloyds has been acknowledged as the top employer of LGBT people in Scotland by the Scottish branch of campaigning charity, Scotland.

The acknowledgement follows the publication of Stonewall’s UK-wide Workplace Equality Index in January.

Stonewall Scotland held an event on Tuesday evening to recognize LGBT employers north of the border. It celebrated the results at a reception at Lloyds' Scottish headquarters on the Mound in Edinburgh on Tuesday evening.

Almost 150,000 people have signed a petition against Northern Ireland's proposed 'Freedom of Conscience' bill.

In December, DUP minister Paul Given introduced the bill to the Northern Ireland legislative assembly, which would allow people with strongly held religious views to deny access to goods, facilities and services on the grounds of sexual orientation.

Lapland's LGBTI community took to the streets over the weekend for the region's annual Pride celebrations.

Arctic Pride, which takes place in Lapland's commercial centre, Rovaniemi, was set up to provide a safe place for sexual and gender minorities to meet in one of Europe's most northern cities, which lies just six miles from the Arctic Circle.

Lapland's LGBTI community took to the streets over the weekend for the region's annual Pride celebrations.

Arctic Pride, which takes place in Lapland's commercial centre, Rovaniemi, was set up to provide a safe place for sexual and gender minorities to meet in one of Europe's most northern cities, which lies just six miles from the Arctic Circle.

Jacobsen Solutions’ Chief of Operations in Europe came out to his boss after he was questioned about having an affair with a member of staff

In 1985, I was responsible for all of our consulting projects in Europe when the Chairman (my boss) asked me to meet him at Heathrow. All the projects were in great shape, so this was unusual.

He said, ‘Let's go for a walk.’ We walked to what was then a mezzanine in Terminal 1. Very quickly he came to the point. He said, ‘Mr. Jacobson, Senior Management has told me that you are having an affair with one of your Project Directors?’ My response was, ‘Really, who would that be?’

Bulgarian law does not consider homophobic motives as hate crime - they are acts of hooliganism

Bulgaria’s efforts to investigate and prosecute hate crime are deemed a failure in a report Amnesty International published today (9 February).

According to the report, the lack of adequate investigation and prosecution created a climate of discrimination, fear and ultimately violence. Some victims of hate crime do not dare to report their experiences to the police because they fear further discrimination.

Irish TV presenter Gay Byrne say he expects the referendum to end in favor of gay marriage

Veteran Irish TV and radio presenter Gay Byrne has spoken in support for gay marriage in Ireland.

The 80-year-old said same-sex marriage was ‘long overdue’ and gay couples in Ireland should have the same rights as straight people when it comes to marriage.

‘You must remember, I lived through people walking out of the Late Late Show because we were discussing the possibility of decriminalising homosexuality,’ Byrne told The Irish Times’ Róisín Ingle in her podcast.

Unity Party and ruling coalition MP Veiko Spolitis is pushing for Latvia to recognize the relationship rights of unwed couples both gay and straight for the first time

Latvia may become the next Eastern European state to formally recognize the relationships of unmarried couples in a proposal that would see gay and lesbian couples recognized for the first time in the country’s history

Currently gays and lesbians are protected from discrimination in the workplace in Latvia and homosexuality has been legal since it regained independence from the Soviet Union in 1992.

Head of Catholic encourages 'everyone to continue their efforts in defense of the family'

Pope Francis is publicly supporting a referendum in Slovakia that bans marriage between same-sex couples and makes it illegal for them to adopt children.

The vote will take place on Saturday (7 February).

During a general audience in Rome on Wednesday (4 February), the head of the Catholic Church said: 'I greet the pilgrims from Slovakia and, through them, I wish to express my appreciation to the entire Slovak church, encouraging everyone to continue their efforts in defense of the family, the vital cell of society.'

An Italian archbishop has attacked a law banning anti-gay speech, describing it as a 'crime against humanity'.

Luigi Negri, the archbishop of Ferrara-Comacchio, has taken issue with a law the country has enacted to protect LGBTI people from hate crime.

He has also blamed the country's economic crisis on abortions, claiming that it has 'stopped more than six milllion Italians coming into the world'. Italy actually has the fourth lowest abortion rate in Europe, with just over 100,000 in 2012.

I've stayed because... Copenhagen is a capital city that feels like a town, so you get the perks of being in a big city but none of the traffic, noise and hassle – you can ride your bike literally everywhere, all year round. Copenhagen is by far one of the most liveable places that I know of in the world.